How about now
by LadyNightRunner
Summary: Since the instant the Kyuubi was sealed, he was shunned by his world. But Naruto swore to rise above it, didn't he? And he will. He will make the world see him ina different light.


Ah, here we have another victim of my habit of listening to country on Saturday mornings. I heard this on KKTC and immediately htought of Naruto. I've heard it so many times before, but this time it struck a chord. We all know that few believed Baruto could get anywhere in life. Even fewer thought he cuold become Hokage. This is a tribute to him, and to them.

**Disclaimer: I do not own 'How do you like me now?'**

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* * *

__I was always the crazy one,_

_I broke into the stadium,  
and I wrote your number on the 50-yard line.  
You were always the perfect one  
and the valedictorian so  
under your number I wrote, "call for a good time"_

Naruto hung from the Hokage Faces, a brush in one hand and a can of paint in the other. The stone faces were liberally decorated with pictures and mild insults in various colors of paint. A crowd had gathered on the viewing stage below, mostly Chunin and Jonin, all yelling at the blonde. Laughing, Naruto waved the brush and proclaimed the watchers to be losers and wannabes, saying that they just didn't have the guts to do something as low as this.

_I only wanted to catch your attention  
But you overlooked me somehow  
Besides you had too many boyfriends to mention  
And I played my guitar too loud._

Graduation Day. Naruto sat alone on the swing at the far corner of the schoolyard, slowly swinging back and forth. Before him, all the students from the graduating class were congratulated by their parents. Eventually, Naruto got up and left.

Iruka watched from his classroom. He knew what it was like to be alone, but not that alone. He'd had friends, at least. Naruto didn't have even that.

_How do you like me now?  
How do you like me now,  
Now that I'm on my way?  
Do you still think I'm crazy  
Standin' here today?  
I couldn't make you love me  
But I always dreamed about living in your radio  
How do you like me now?_

Iruka watches the sea of faces before him. He has been witness to the appointment of two Hokage before this, but this is the first time he has been a Guest of Honor. Kakashi sits beside him, grinning under his mask. Across the stage, Jiraiya looks undeniably smug. There is an undeniable feeling of pride buzzing away giddily in Iruka's chest. To have one of his own students be named Hokage…

Naruto stepps into view. Iruka's breath catches in his chest. How long has it been? How long since that confident young man before him was just a scruffy, troublemaking child? It couldn't be nearly ten years already. It had seemed to be no more than the time it took for the final tears to fall for the Kyuubi tragedy.

There are others here with him, others who never believed this possible at first, then grew to believe. Sakura sits near the far end beside Rock Lee, a picture of Sasuke in her lap. Iruka had asked her about it earlier; she said that if anyone needed to see this, it was him. Gaara is flanked by his siblings, having refused to sit with the other Kage present. His place, he said, was where he was when he and Naruto met: teamed with Kankuro and Temari, as a fellow Shinobi and vessel, nothing more.

Tsunade steps up, ready to relinquish her position. Iruka and the others stand. Off to the side, a faint golden haze appears near the end of the stage closest to the Hokage Faces. Iruka turns to see it, and Naruto catches his gaze, following his line of sight in time to see a lean blonde man with shockingly blue eyes form from the haze. He wears an open white robe with red flames licking at the hem. He smiles. Naruto smiles back, and turns to Tsunade again, ready to take the title he has been determined to take since he understood what it meant.

_When I took off to Tennessee  
I heard that you made fun of me  
Never imagined I'd make it this far  
Then you married into money girl  
Ain't it a cruel and funny world?  
He took your dreams and tore them apart._

Naruto sits before the little marker he placed beside the memorial. Sasuke was a defector, a traitor, and a runaway. His death had not warranted a place on the memorial. That honor was reserved for those who had served. Still, the youngest and second-to-last Uchiha had managed to find himself a special place in Naruto's heart. He had been his first rival, first kiss, first near-death experience. No one could tell Naruto that Sasuke didn't deserve to be remembered.

At first, Sakura came with him to visit the site. She cried often, mourning the loss of the young man she'd loved for so long. She'd spoken at length about everything she'd loved about him, and Naruto was surprised to hear that she'd recognized his flaws- the arrogance and single-mindedness that had made him so 'cool' to the girls, the slightly unsteady grasp of the Sharingan, and the undeniable but well hidden thirst for power- and loved him all the more for them, as they made him more human and attainable. She never comes any more. She has gotten over him, gotten over his death, and pours herself into loving Rock Lee, the one who unabashedly proclaimed his love for her from the moment they met. He never gave up, and now his efforts are rewarded.

This is where Naruto screamed a promise to capture Itachi and force him to bow at his younger brother's feet. Naruto knew, even then, that it was Itachi that drove Sasuke to his madness.

"You coulda been where I am now, y'know?" he says. The stone doesn't answer. Sometimes he thinks it does, but not today. "But you couldn't see it. We could've been neck-and-neck the whole way. Who know which one of us would have won in the end."

The times that the stone speaks are late at night, when clouds hide the stars, rain pours down, and the wind howls so loudly that Naruto can hear Sasuke's voice in it. It is not rainy today. The sun is just rising, making the autumn fog glow.

"And now look. How're you ever gonna catch up to me?"

_He never comes home  
And you're always alone  
And your kids hear you cryin' down the hall  
Alarm clock starts ringin'  
Who could that be singin'  
Its me baby, with your wake up call!_

When Naruto wanders the village now, greetings come at him from all sides. Many of them are from the older ninja, those who shunned him for so long. It is a bittersweet victory, Naruto notes. They love him now, but many of them don't realize that he is where is he because of the beast within him; the beast that, due to his frequent visits and incessant bothering, has become complacent and friendly. They love him because he is their leader, the most powerful ninja in the village. He cannot always bring himself to answer all the greetings, but he replies to most of them, for the Hokage is nothing if not a friendly man.

He likes the children the best. There are small boys who run around with paint or marker or mud streaks on their cheeks, pretending to be the young prankster their parents speak of. Little girls play at Hinata or Sakura's roles, wanting to be either one of the women who won the heart of the Hokage. Whole bands of them run about to reenact the famous battles they hear of in school. Playing the part of Naruto is a great privilege.

Sometimes, the children will throw themselves at him en masse, so enthusiastic in their greeting that they knock him clear off his feet and he is buried under a pile of small bodies. This is what he loves the best. This is what he has wanted from the moment he was old enough to realize that he was the one everyone singled out. He wants to be loved. He wants to be accepted. He wants to be wanted for who he really is. And he is.

_How do you like me now?  
How do you like me now,  
Now that I'm on my way?  
Do you still think I'm crazy  
Standin' here today?  
I couldn't make you love me  
But I always dreamed about living in your radio  
How do you like me now?_

The shout echoes from the walkway above the village gates. Its message is passed across the rooftops to a young woman. She hastily grabs her sandals and takes off running, shooting a hasty thank you to the rather bewildered Chunin behind her. He stays where he is, utterly shocked. (The Lady Hinata never acts like this.)

The gates swing open. A tall blonde steps in, exhausted, accompanied by a small entourage, the members of which are equally exhausted.

"Naruto!" The head snaps up. Shoulders straighten. Sleepy blue eyes brighten and a smile lights up the tan face. Naruto Uzumaki, 6th Hokage, breaks into a sprint, making for the small figure running towards him.

"Hinata!" he yowls joyfully, sweeping her into his arms and spinning until he falls down. She laughs giddily and rains kisses on his face. At this point, she doesn't care that the entire village can see the Hyuuga heiress in her bathrobe.

"Welcome home, Lord Hokage." It's Neji, Hanabi, and Hiashi, all come to see what made Hinata drop everything and run. Neji is the one who spoke. Naruto grins and gets to his feet, then helps Hinata up. He bobs his head in quick, polite greeting to the current head of the Hyuuga clan and his youngest daughter, and then wraps Neji in a bear hug. As always, he gets a wheezy squeak and some half-hearted wriggling before Neji gives up and squeezes back.

"Careful, Naruto. I want him back alive," Tenten laughs. She has come accompanied by most of the Chunin class Naruto grew up with, and she stands there, hands on hips, wondering is either of the two men before her will ever grow up.

"How did it go?" Shikamaru asks. "Were there any problems?" He is one of the few who is still fully dressed; he was probably up late again grading papers.

"Went fine. Gaara says hello, and that he an' Kankuro an' Temari will be coming out here soon." Shikamaru gets a dreamy look and Naruto grins. It is no secret that there is something between Temari and Shikamaru.

"Then in that case, I suggest all of you get home and go to bed," Iruka says firmly. "I know at least half of you have…have upcoming missions." He loses most of his authority by interrupting himself mid-sentence with a yawn.

"I second that," Kiba murmurs. "C'mon, Ino, let's go home."

The knot of ninja breaks up. Naruto bids his entourage goodnight and makes for home. As he goes, a few windows open and people lean out, welcoming him home. Naruto smiles. He belongs here. Even when everyone thought he would leave, wanted him to leave, he stuck it out. Now, here he is, in spite of it all. He is home.

"See, Sasuke? I can do it."


End file.
